Interview: Devon Allman - Paving His Own Way

On “When I Left Home,” Luther Dickinson plays slide and lead. Because that’s such a personal song, did you intentionally not play those parts on that one to try and steer clear of the slide/Allman association?
Luther’s a friend and he’s such a great player, so it just made sense. Slide in my family is very well spoken for. The craziest thing is that I’ve never played slide—kind of out of respect to Duane. I’ve never really messed with it but I really did hear it on that track. I never wanted to be the cat that learned all of Duane’s licks and stuff. It was always about trying to find my own way. That’s not to say that I don’t respect the Allman Brothers’ catalog because it’s absolutely amazing and I’m a really big fan. I just didn’t want to get stuck in that groove where I was expected to play that because of my relationship. I’m my own person. I fell in love with The Beatles first and then it went on to Kiss and Tom Petty.

That might explain why you chose to include a cover of Petty’s “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around.”
I actually wanted to remake that song for about 10 years. I’ve always had it in my mind that it would be really cool to take that song, slow it down a little bit, make it a little bluesier, and get a really great female vocalist for it.

You got Samantha Fish [“Cachet 22,” November 2011] to sing with you on that one.
It really worked out. We’re friends, on the same label, and have the same publicist. She’s amazing. Just like Susan Tedeschi was being called the “next Bonnie Raitt,” I think that Sam is like the next Susan Tedeschi. She’s next in line. She’s just got one of those voices.

Fish is also a great guitarist but you didn’t get into a guitar duel with her, as might be expected.
Correct. She’s a great lead guitarist but that song doesn’t feature any leads. There was discussion about us maybe trading licks at the end but the song doesn’t really lend itself to that. It’s such a song and not really a jam.

What guitar are you using on “Yadira’s Lullaby?”
That’s a cigar box guitar that I was given on tour by a fan. It’s a custom one made for me with a double neck—there’s a 4-string and a 3-string—and it’s an old cigar box from Honduras. This track was all done on the 4-string.

Me and my girl [Yadira Rodriguez] would Skype when I was on tour and I was playing this tune and it just stuck with me. I thought that it fit. I’ve had this theme with my records, going back to my Honeytribe records, where there’s an acoustic solo piece. I thought it would be cool to continue the theme but not necessarily on an acoustic guitar.

Are you playing that [“Yadira’s Lullaby”] with your fingers? The upper notes sound very crisp, against the low open drones.
The whole thing is fingerpicked. Over the years I found myself playing leads with my fingers instead of a pick and it worked perfectly on the cigar box. Live, many times much to the chagrin of photographers, I end up putting the pick in my mouth and switching to fingers, then going back and forth and back and forth. It really depends on the area of the song and what kind of approach, or lack of attack, that the particular part needs.

Are you also using the cigar box guitar on “Time Machine” and “Turn Off the World?”
No, I’m using a Gretsch resonator. It’s kind of crazy. I bought this $500 resonator, and I only bought it to play a song on the Royal record called “Nowhere to Hide” because that song is tuned down really low, to C#. Although I bought the guitar just to play on that song, I noticed that it has a unique quality and I started writing on it. I ended up recording with it—all the leads on “Time Machine” were done with it. We were blown away by it, and that guitar really became the MVP of the session.

What other guitars did you use on the album?
My number one is a historic ’59 Custom Shop Les Paul in cherry sunburst. It’s probably on two-thirds of the record. Les Paul signed it before he passed away. I got to play with him. I also used a Strat on “Strategy,” which is kind of apropos. I have a Tele that was made by Kurt Linhof. He’s a boutique guitar maker and he’s also the guy that sold Duane Allman his tobacco burst that’s in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Tell us about your signature Fuchs amp. What type of sounds were you aiming for?
I really wanted classic tones like a Stones-y or a Tom Petty kind of thing. Not too gain-y, just breaking up a little bit. A timeless sort of sound.

Because of the name association, many people assume that you’ve had a
free ride with your career but you’ve actually paid your dues. I
understand you’ve worked at Burger King and Guitar Center, among other
unexpected places. Why not just ride the Allman Brothers gravy train?
That was never part of the game plan. I just want to be able to know
that I did the work myself. I want to look back on a 40-year career and
think, ‘Damn, it really grew on its own.’” Dude, I’ve done every job
that you can imagine. I worked in a steel factory, a T-shirt screen
printing sweatshop, I’ve worn a suit and sold insurance, and one of my
last jobs before I started touring the world and making records was
Guitar Center. The really cool thing about doing all those jobs is that I
really have a profound appreciation and respect for what I’m able to do
every day.

I noticed you have Curtis Mayfield’s image tattooed on your left bicep.
Curtis Mayfield’s always been my biggest hero. He was a rare cat. I had
read somewhere that Hendrix was influenced by him and I was such a
Hendrix freak that I was like, “I have to check this guy out. If this
cat influenced Hendrix, he’s got to be badass.” I went back and did my
research and I fell in love. I bought every record he ever made. He’s
one of those rare cats that when you listen to those records, if it’s
got a horn section and a string section, it doesn’t sound like Disney.
It sounds amazing. It doesn’t matter what mood I’m in. When I play some
Curtis Mayfield, the world is groovy again.

New York City native Joe Charupakorn is a guitarist, author, and editor. He has interviewed the world’s biggest guitar icons including Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Yngwie Malmsteen, Carlos Santana, Neal Schon, and Dave Davies, among many others, for Premier Guitar. Additionally, he has written over 20 instructional books for Hal Leonard Corporation. His books are available worldwide and have been translated into many languages. Visit him on the web at joecharupakorn.com.

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